Saturday, February 23, 2013

Take A Memo: Obama has sent a note to Congress informing them that he has sent 100 US troops to Niger to support French troops in Mali, with the mission to gather intelligence and share it with the French. The Americans will apparently be flying drones out of Niger, and not just over Mali. It's not an act of war. We don't do 'war' no more.

Assignment:Three minutes of truth. Put down the coffee, click the link and watch. Sure it's fiction, most truths are.

Been There, Done That: The Chairman of the Federal Reserve has privately assured investors that the rapid rise in the price of farmland and the double-digit rise in housing prices are not indications of another asset-bubble. Heck, at this point it barely qualifies as exuberance.

Because:The US has told Pakistan that letting Iran supply much needed gas and oil is 'sanctionable' under the global reach of US laws.

Size Matters: The UN, in the face of genetic proof that UN peacekeepers started the cholera epidemic in Haiti, has asserted its 'We're bigger than you are' based immunity to dismiss any and all claims from the over 5,000 victims. There's never a good time to be a Haitian.

Bliss: Rand Paul (Tea Potty – KY) says that the next time he sponsors the Child Interstate Abortion Notification Act he may well read it. Or at least the executive summary. Which is more than he did the first two times he sponsored it. Seems he doesn't actually know what's in the bill. So? No one in Congress has ever read the Patriot Act, either.

Civilization: The only wild bear in Switzerland was killed because he was a threat to humans. Well, that was the humans' opinion; they didn't ask the bear.

Briar Patch: The White House blog clearly and rather proudly says that Obama wants to cut Social Security by switching to chained-CPI for future adjustments. This would lead to a cumulative lowering of benefits, in perpetuity. And this is his position before negotiating with the Republicans. He calls it “balanced”, he calls the cuts “savings”. He's reading from a set of Republican talking points.

Laissez Les Bons Temps Rouler:NOAA says that Louisiana faces the fastest rate of sea-level rise in the world. The seas are rising so fast that some current coastal restoration projects will be obsolete before they are completed.

Head Start: Texas state troopers will no longer be allowed to shoot immigrants from helicopters.

Our Motto

Keep fightin' for freedom and justice, beloveds, but don't you forget to have fun doin' it. Lord, let your laughter ring forth. Be outrageous, ridicule the fraidy-cats, rejoice in all the oddities that freedom can produce. And when you get through kickin' ass and celebratin' the sheer joy of a good fight, be sure to tell those who come after how much fun it was.